Monday, July 21, 2008

States avoid slashing higher ed moneyStateline.org – July 17, 2008Tuition at the University of Kentucky will increase 9 percent this fall, University of Maine students will pay about 10 percent more and University of Michigan-Ann Arbor tuition will rise 5.6 percent. Yet students at those schools could feel lucky they aren’t paying even more. Despite a tough economic climate, several states are attempting to hold down college tuition – or at least not let increases get out of control – by avoiding deep cuts to higher education, an area that states have been quick to slash in past years when funds were low. The effort to hold down tuition stems from states tying their economic futures to an educated workforce. The biggest economic payoff for states will come from “sending their kids to college,” Diane Swonk, chief economist with Mesirow Financial, told governors at the National Governors Association meeting earlier this month in Philadelphia. To be competitive, workers will need at least a college degree, Swonk said, and since the federal government is not meeting this challenge, finding ways to educate people is falling to states and local jurisdictions.

Summer slide: Low-income students can lose ground when school is outThe Mercury News – July 16, 2008They call it the “summer slide”. As June slips into July and then the dog days of August, many of the math skills, history lessons and new vocabulary words that students acquired during the school year slip without the routine of daily classes. Over time, such advantage as summer programs can catapult higher-income children even further ahead of their lower-income peers. That has educators increasingly worried that the achievement gap – the academic chasm that separates black and Latino students from their white and Asian peers – actually widens over the summer. The safety nets that exist during the school year – from easily available free and reduced price meals to one-on-one tutoring and after-school programs – are gone. And while summer programs do exist for disadvantaged kids, the slots are scarce. Also, those summer programs that do exist for low-income students are often launched only to disappear when grants dry up or budgets are cut. Alexander found the summer slide had a cumulative and devastating effect. “We followed the same group of students year to year,” said Alexander. “By the ninth grade, the low-income students were 3 ½ grade levels behind their more advantaged peers.”

24% of California Students Drop Out Of High SchooleNews 2.0 – July 17, 2008Employing a new system for tracking high school dropouts, California discovered a rate significantly higher than the one previously calculated by educators, using another technique. The state issued the results on Wednesday, estimating that 1 in 4 California students gave up school last year. Beyond the proved 24 percent dropout rate, the data released by state schools chief Jack O’Connell also shows that African American and Latino students quit school in a bigger proportion than other ethnic groups. The state Education Department says it can now determine dropouts far more precisely making use of its new “Statewide Student Identifier System” in which every student is given an exclusive, anonymous ID number. With the help of the new method, schools can follow the trace of missing students for the first time, and find out whether students sign up to another in California, even if it is in a different district or city. The system, which will cost $33 million over the next three years, other than the millions invested for the initial development, guarantees to eventually offer a considerably better manner to figure out where students go and their reasons for doing so.

Juvenile Justice

‘Gap kids’ fate to be decided in Family CourtThe Providence Journal – July 11, 2008Dozens of “gap kids” who were charged as adults during the 130 days when Rhode Island prosecuted 17-year-olds as adults are entitled to Family Court hearings to determine if they should be tried in adult courts, the state Supreme Court ruled yesterday. “We hold that juveniles, including defendants before us, should have been presented in the Family Court in the first instance, “ Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg wrote in the court’s 26-page opinion. “ A juvenile may be referred to adult court only after a probable-cause hearing and a finding by the hearing justice that waiver of jurisdiction is appropriate and consistent with the statute.” The decision detailed the “jurisdictional quagmire” that resulted from Governor Carcieri’s proposal to save money by treating 17-year-olds as adults in criminal matters. The General Assembly adopted the proposal, which was based on the assumption that the Adult Correctional Institutions would prove cheaper than the Training School. But the savings proved to be questionable, at best. And, Goldberg wrote, “The record is devoid of any legislative findings that this amendment constituted sound social policy, that it was in the best interests of the juvenile offenders to whom it would apply, or that it was a prudent fiscal measure.” The Assembly ended up repealing the law. But the repeal was not retroactive, so that a created a population of about 500 gap kids who had been charged as adults between July 1 and Nov. 8, 2007.

Report says Calif. should end juvenile prisonsThe Mercury News – July 14, 2008A state watchdog commission recommended Monday that California phase out its antiquated juvenile prisons by 2011, replacing them with regional lockups run by counties. The regional centers would hold only the most dangerous offenders under the proposal by the Little Hoover Commission. Less serious offenders would be housed at local juvenile halls. Commissioners said the state should end its three-year experiment with combining youth and adult prisons under the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Authority over youth prisons would be placed under an Office of Juvenile Justice reporting to the governor until the state ends its involvement. The report said giving counties responsibility for housing juvenile offenders would bring substantial savings but doesn’t estimate how much that would be. The commission found that the state has made some progress in reforming its youth prison system. Next week, an Alameda County judge will consider whether those reforms are taking too long. If so, the judge might appoint a receiver with broad oversight powers.Foster Care

DCF Settlement Calls For More Foster FamiliesThe Courant – July 18, 2008In the latest development in a nearly 20-year battle, a federal judge approved a settlement Thursday that orders the state to recruit more foster families to help troubled children and reduce the number of non-family group homes for abused youth. The order represents the newest corrective action plan in the case knows as Juan F., a long-running battle between the troubled Department of Children and Families and children’s advocates who filed a class-action lawsuit against the agency. “After dragging its feet for more than a year on issues critical to the well-being of Connecticut’s abused and neglected children, DCF has finally made a serious commitment to address them,” said Ira Lustbader, a lawyer for Children’s Rights, a national watchdog group that has clashed with DCF for nearly two decades. In a 14-page agreement, the two sides agreed that the state must add 850 new foster family homes over the next two years. Currently, more than 30 percent of the children who are under DCF’s care do not live with families, which is far above the national benchmark of 18 percent. Instead, they live in expensive settings that include emergency shelters, hospitals, treatment centers, and non-family group homes.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Illegal immigrants face threat of no collegeUSA Today – July 6, 2008Some states are making it harder for illegal immigrants to attend college by denying in-state tuition benefits or banning undocumented students. In the past two years, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia and Oklahoma have refused in-state tuition benefits to students who entered the USA illegally with their parents but grew up and went to school in the state. That represents a reversal from earlier this decade, when 10 states passed laws allowing in-state rates for such students. This summer, South Carolina became the first state to bar undocumented students from all public colleges and universities. Opponents say students shouldn’t be penalized for their parents’ actions. Helping them is “the right thing to do even if it’s unpopular,” says North Carolina state Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat who introduced a bill that would prevent state institutions from asking about students’ immigration status.

Homeless children get a taste of college with University of Texas at Dallas programThe Dallas Morning News – July 5, 2008Single mothers are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. In Dallas County, more than 2,000 women and children can be found living on the streets or in shelters on any given day, according to a 2007 Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance report. Many of these children jump from school to school, falling behind, dropping out and ending up in poverty like their parents. Rainbow Days, a Dallas-based nonprofit that provides life skills education to high-risk children, wants to break that cycle. Every year, the organization brings local children living in shelters to UT Dallas for a taste of college life. Most have never set foot on a college campus before. Neither have their parents. Rainbow Days doesn’t track its students, but its leaders believe in the program’s ability to fuel their ambitions and expand their horizons – in just one week.

Preventing dropouts key in econ. develop.Daily Leader - July 9, 2008“In the industrial community, there’s an economic impact when students drop out of school,” Smith said. “The state is losing money because students aren’t getting their diplomas. We hear from industries all the time that the number one thing they need is a trained workforce.” According to department of education statistics shown by Smith, the estimated lifetime earnings in Mississippi lost by one class of dropouts is estimated at $4 billion. In order to move the state toward a lower dropout rate, the department of education will require each school district to implement dropout prevention plans this fall. But Smith said local organizations like the chamber should also get involved in local schools to assist in any way possible. Smith said Mississippi school districts are losing an average of 2,000 students before they ever enter high school. In order to improve this number, she said, communities must come together and identify students who are at risk of dropping out.Juvenile Justice

Close-to-Home Treatment for Youths Gains NoticeCityLimits.org - July 7, 2008Dr. Clarice Bailey was sent to New York City by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government to find out what it’s like inside the city’s program for juvenile justice reform. The Institute had its eye on the Department of Probation initiative called “Project Zero,” which seeks alternative kinds of rehabilitation to locking up young offenders in juvenile jail. Probation Commissioner Martin Horn started the program in 2003, with “zero” standing for the goal of sending no kids to juvenile correctional facilities outside the city. Instead, they would return home to live with their families, attend school as usual, and participate in intensive therapy sessions aimed at helping them get on the right path from inside their own neighborhoods. In the year before Project Zero began, 1,300 to 1,500 New York City youths were sent to juvenile facilities, according to Department of Probation (DOP) statistics. In 2004, the Department sent 1,257 juveniles to state correctional facilities, and by 2007, 795 juveniles were admitted. DOP data also show that from 2002 to 2007, the number of city youth incarcerated as a result of their Family Court judgment decreased by 27 percent. The DOP reports that this decline was caused by the Project Zero initiative.

S. F. juvenile hall braces for detainee surgeSan Francisco Chronicle – July 4, 2008The population of San Francisco’s juvenile hall is likely to spike now that the city has reversed its policy of shielding juvenile illegal immigrants convicted of felonies from federal immigration officials, city officials said Thursday. And the undocumented youths are likely to see the length of their stays in detention increase dramatically as the juvenile probation department faces fewer alternatives to locking them up. At least one city official warned that many of the teenagers could be detained for a year or more. In San Francisco, alternatives to locking them up include home detention with electronic ankle monitors, a stay at a group home, mandatory check-ins at four city-funded nonprofit centers that are open from 3 to 9pm daily, and participation in community programs that offer mentors and counseling. National research shows that finding alternatives to incarceration and stressing rehabilitation lowers the likelihood youths will commit more crimes, improves chances they’ll stay in school and saves tax dollars. But none of those options appear viable for illegal immigrant youths charged with felonies in San Francisco.Foster Care

House Resolution Recognizes the Importance of Providing Workplace Opportunities for Foster YouthMarket Watch – July 11, 1008A Congressional briefing will be held today to discuss House Resolution 1332, introduced yesterday by Congressman Dennis A. Cardoza (D-Calif.). Congress is being asked to support the resolution which encourages employment opportunities for foster youth. Every year, more than 25, 000 foster youth age out of the foster care system with few resources to start their own lives. Research shows that these children are at a higher risk than their peers for bouts of homelessness, criminal activity and incarceration. Many lack a stable environment due to numerous foster home placements, and have limited family or community connections. Internships level the playing field for foster youth by providing them with access into the professional workplace, where they can build resumes, network with others and launch their careers. These experiences prove that with the right support, foster students can succeed and flourish.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

6 States OK’d to Write Education Laws Outside ‘No Child’FOXNEWS.COM – July 1, 2008It’s a softening for how the No Child Left Behind currently works – with schools having to take certain steps at specific times for missing math and reading testing goals. Critics have complained that the approach is too rigid and treats schools the same regardless of whether they miss the mark by a little or a lot. The states getting more freedom under a pilot program are Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Maryland and Ohio. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings made the announcement during a speech Tuesday in Austin, Texas. The states that won the approval have come up with plans to more closely tailor solutions to individual school’s problems and focus resources on schools in the worst shape. Some critics worry the changes, specifically the focus on the worst-performing schools, will take the pressure off schools that are generally doing well but having trouble with one group of students – such as a minority group or kids with disabilities.

Free-college programs multiplyUSA Today – July 1, 2008A scholarship program that offers free college tuition as a reward for attending public schools in a Michigan city is catching on in other communities seeking to revitalize their urban centers. Since November 2005, when anonymous donors in Kalamazoo, Mich., launched the Kalamazoo Promise scholarship, about a dozen cities, such as Pittsburgh, Denver and El Dorado, Ark., have started similar programs. Details vary by city, but most programs basically follow Kalamazoo’s model: It pays most or all tuition and fees to public universities or community colleges in the state for students who graduate from the public school system, as long as they start attending there by ninth grade. Those who start in kindergarten get full tuition; those who start in ninth grade, 65%. Kalamazoo’s school district, where enrollment declined for decades, rose by more than 1,200 students after the program began. Thousands of jobs are being created, according to Southwest Michigan First, an economic development firm. Financing is a challenge for cities interested in setting up free-tuition plans. Many rely partly on private funding.

Few school districts, nonprofits vying for state dropout aidThe Dallas Morning News – July 3, 2008Just 57 school districts, charter schools and nonprofit groups – including several from the Dallas area – have applied for one of the state’s new dropout recovery grants. The Texas Education Agency said Thursday that 36 school districts – out of 1,031 in the state – are among the applicants for grants under the $6 million program aimed at helping dropouts complete their coursework so they can earn a high school diploma. Some lawmakers and education groups had voiced concern about proposed rules for the program that would allow nonprofit groups operating private schools to apply for a grant. Only six nonprofits were among the grant applicants and there is no guarantee that any will receive funding.

Juvenile Justice

Ariz. courts trying alternative juvenile justiceThe Arizona Republic – June 30, 2008There were almost 3,500 youths detained in Pima County in 2003, a number that plummeted to 2,583 last year and is still dropping. In year four of a wide-scale transformation of Pima County’s juvenile-justice system, troubled kids are being diverted into other alternatives. “We’re responding to national research which negates some commonly held beliefs that you can scare them straight,” said presiding Juvenile Court Judge Patricia Escher. “More frequently, when you detain young people inappropriately, what you do is send them on a path of criminality.” How states treat their kids, including those in the juvenile-justice system, got attention this month with the annual release of the Kids Count report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore, a private charitable organization “dedicated to helping build better futures for disadvantaged children in the United States.” Some offenders are just going home to wait for trial. Others, on intensive or standard probation or arrested for misdemeanor domestic violence offenses, go to evening programs that provide not only tutoring, life skills and dinner, but perhaps as importantly, a structure that keeps them off the streets.

Reforming Juvenile InjusticeThe Huffington Post – July 2, 2008Our nation’s juvenile justice policies are replete with contradictions between practices proven to prevent crime, and punitive laws politicians promote to get elected. Juvenile and criminal justice principles, scientific research on prevention, intervention, and adolescent brain development, and US treaty obligations argue against the “lock ‘em up and throw away the key” policies that harm children, increase recidivism and exacerbate crime. The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Reauthorization Act (JJDPA), first enacted in 1974 and overdue for reauthorization, is pending in Congress. Next week, the Senate will consider this legislation and amendments to improve juvenile justice in this country. Current juvenile justice practices ignore children’s age and amenability to rehabilitation. On any given night in the United States, almost 10,000 children are held in adult jails and prisons, where they are particularly vulnerable to victimization because of their size and youth. The Centers for Disease Control recently reported that after release, children who are incarcerated in adult prisons commit more crimes, and more serious crimes, than children with similar histories held in juvenile facilities.

Foster Care

Judge demands state keep foster-care promisesThe Seattle Times – July 1, 2008A judge Monday gave the state Department of Social and Health Services 30 days to start keeping promises it made four years ago to settle a class-action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of foster children. Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Charles R. Synder said the state has made plenty of promises to closely monitor the health and well-being of children in its care, but has failed to keep those promises. The ruling, unexpected after Monday’s lengthy hearing, requires the state to find ways to make monthly visits to foster children, to get them prompt health screenings, to ensure that they see their siblings regularly and to keep caseloads at a level where this is possible. State officials said the agency is already making considerable strides toward these goals, thanks in part to recent funding.